1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a multi-layered packet processing device, and more particularly to a multi-layered packet processing device for processing a received multi-layered packet at a high speed, by using multiple processors. The present application is based on Korean Patent Application No. 2000-56825, which is incorporated herein by reference.
2. Description of the Related Art
Based on a widely-known Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) reference model, a precondition for data communication within a network is that the data has to be transferred from a top layer to a bottom layer and from the bottom layer to the top layer. During the data transmission from the top layer to the bottom layer, a header containing information is added to the data, through a process called ‘encapsulation’.
In the communication field, the term ‘encapsulation’ means inclusion of a data structure in another data structure. Until reaching a target destination, the data structure is hidden. For example, when a transmission control protocol/internet protocol (TCP/IP) type data packet is encapsulated in an asynchronous transfer mode (ATM) frame, which is transferred on a cell basis, the TCP/IP type data packet is only recognized as a bit stream among the ATM data.
Functions of the devices in the network include processing a header/trailer of the encapsulated data, such as validation, conversion, updating, etc. Here, the processing needs to be handled fast for high-speed communication. Additionally, the trailer includes information about data length and Cyclic Redundancy Check (CRC).
FIG. 1 is a view for explaining a conventional packet processing. When the data packet is transferred to a memory (1-3) via an input interface (1-1), a Central Processing Unit (CPU; 1-4) reads, analyzes, and processes the header information stored in the memory (1-3), and outputs the packet via an output interface (1-2).
According to conventional data packet processing, since the processes of accessing and processing various information of the header of the packet stored in the memory (1-3), and storing the data in the memory (1-3) have to be repeatedly performed, the packet handling efficiency is deteriorated, while a next packet is held in stand-by state in the memory (1-3).
Accordingly, the conventional central packet processing method is inefficient as it relates to a packet processing speed.